Dataset Information

The impact of Medicare Part D on out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs, medication utilization, health resource utilization, and preference-based health utility.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

To quantify the impact of Medicare Part D eligibility on medication utilization, emergency department use, hospitalization, and preference-based health utility among civilian noninstitutionalized Medicare beneficiaries.

Study design

Difference-in-differences analyses were used to estimate the effects of Part D eligibility on health outcomes by comparing a 12-month period before and after Part D implementation using the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Models adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics and health status and compared Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 and older with near elderly aged 55-63 years old.

Principal findings

Five hundred and fifty-six elderly and 549 near elderly were included. After adjustment, Part D was associated with a U.S.$179.86 (p=.034) reduction in out-of-pocket costs and an increase of 2.05 prescriptions (p=.081) per patient year. The associations between Part D and emergency department use, hospitalizations, and preference-based health utility did not suggest cost offsets and were not statistically significant.

Conclusions

Although there was a substantial reduction in out-of-pocket costs and a moderate increase in medication utilization among Medicare beneficiaries during the first year after Part D, there was no evidence of improvement in emergency department use, hospitalizations, or preference-based health utility for those eligible for Part D during its first year of implementation.

SUBMITTER: Liu FX

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3165180 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

The impact of Medicare Part D on out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs, medication utilization, health resource utilization, and preference-based health utility.

Liu Frank Xiaoqing FX Alexander G Caleb GC Crawford Stephanie Y SY Pickard A Simon AS Hedeker Donald D Walton Surrey M SM

Health services research 20110524 4

<h4>Objectives</h4>To quantify the impact of Medicare Part D eligibility on medication utilization, emergency department use, hospitalization, and preference-based health utility among civilian noninstitutionalized Medicare beneficiaries.<h4>Study design</h4>Difference-in-differences analyses were used to estimate the effects of Part D eligibility on health outcomes by comparing a 12-month period before and after Part D implementation using the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Models adjusted f ...[more]

PMID: 21609328

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Project description:ImportancePrior research has documented the increase in prescription drug rebates and the coincident increase in out-of-pocket burden for patients paying coinsurance tied to list prices.ObjectiveTo describe the out-of-pocket burden on patients with coinsurance and assess its association with pharmaceutical competition, which increases payers' leverage to seek higher rebates.Design, setting, and participantsThis retrospective cohort study used branded prescription drugs with US sales reported by publicly traded companies. The study included drugs with nonmissing, nonnegative rebates between 2014 and 2018 from SSR Health. Data analysis was conducted from June to December 2020.ExposuresLevel of branded and generic competition and calendar year.Main outcomes and measuresRetail price markup (ie, the ratio of rebate to net price) paid by patients at the point of sale and effective out-of-pocket share (ie, coinsurance multiplied by list price divided by net price) of a standard Part D plan. Trends in these outcomes were examined and then stratified by degree of competition.ResultsThere were 3322 unique National Drug Codes in the analysis, representing 232 distinct molecules from 138 therapeutic classes in 34 disease areas. The ratio of rebate to net prices was higher and increased faster for drugs with branded and generic competitors (from 83% to 172%) than for drugs with only branded competitors (from 61% to 115%) and those without generic equivalents (from 33% to 49%). Hypothetical patients paying standard Part D coinsurance on drug list prices would have experienced an effective out-of-pocket share increase from 48% to 64% in the initial coverage phase, and from 10% to 13% in the catastrophic coverage phase between 2014 and 2018. In the coverage gap, the share increased from 92% in 2014 to 98% in 2016 and then decreased to 90% in 2018. Compared with drugs with no competition, effective out-of-pocket share paid by patients grew 50% faster for drugs with branded competitors and 100% faster for those with branded and generic competitors.Conclusions and relevanceThis study found substantial increases in cost-sharing burden for patients paying coinsurance on drug list prices between 2014 and 2018, especially in markets with more pharmaceutical competition. Payers passing rebates through to patients at the point of sale could restore the benefits of competition and rebates.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Little is known about the impact of different types of chronic diseases on older adults' out-of-pocket healthcare spending and whether certain diseases trigger higher spending needs than others. METHODS:We use data from the 2014 Health and Retirement Study representing a weighted population of 35,939,270 Medicare beneficiaries aged 65+. Generalized linear models are applied to estimate the effect of different chronic diseases on total out-of-pocket expenditure, adjusted for demographics, socio-economic status, physical health, and other factors. We also decompose total spending by expenditure categories (inpatient, non-inpatient, and prescription drug spending). Sensitivity analysis is performed using a younger sample of older adults aged 50-64. RESULTS:Cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension and cancer, induce significantly higher adjusted out-of-pocket spending among older adults than other conditions. These results hold regardless how the spending differences are assessed (absolute or percentage terms). For Medicare beneficiaries, cardiovascular disease is associated with an excess out-of-pocket spending of $317 per year, followed by diabetes ($237), hypertension ($150), and cancer ($144). Prescription drug spending is singularly the most important driver of additional expenses for cardiovascular disease, diabetes and hypertension, while non-inpatient services spending accounts for the bulk of increased spending among those with cancer. CONCLUSIONS:Our finding that major noncommunicable diseases impact individuals' out-of-pocket medical spending differentially-and that service drivers of increased spending may be heterogeneous across disease types-suggest that health professionals and policymakers should recognize that certain chronic diseases exert greater financial toll on the elderly. Interventions to promote more cost efficient healthcare services and consumer choices can help older adults better cope with these expensive long-lasting conditions and reduce the overall burden of noncommunicable diseases.

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Dataset Information

The impact of Medicare Part D on out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs, medication utilization, health resource utilization, and preference-based health utility.

Objectives

Study design

Principal findings

Conclusions

Publications

The impact of Medicare Part D on out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs, medication utilization, health resource utilization, and preference-based health utility.

Similar Datasets

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